'In Living Color' actor Tommy Davidson says Jada Pinkett Smith's mom saved his life when he hit 'rock bottom'
Jada Pinkett Smith welcomed her friend Tommy Davidson to the red table on Monday — for a difficult discussion about surviving addiction, as well as how Smith’s mother helped save his life.
The 56-year-old comedian and In Living Color actor bared it all on the latest episode of “Red Table Talk,” discussing the rise and fall of his career and its relation to his substance abuse issues. He also recalled times when his Woo and Bamboozled co-star, Smith, was one of his closest confidants, but said it was ultimately the words of her mother, Adrienne Banfield-Jones, that pulled him out of the darkest time in his life, in 2005.
“In Philadelphia, I did a show. I was going onstage that night, my talent was gone,” Davidson explained in the episode. “The next day I didn’t want to go to a doggone AA meeting, but I went.”
It was then that Smith called Davidson to check in, and ended up putting her mom on the phone for a conversation that Davidson said saved his life.
“What’s up are you alright?” Davidson recalled Smith asking. “And I was like, ‘Yea I’m alright.’ You said, ‘Hold on.’ And then bam, she took over.”
“I just came in with reinforcement,” Banfield-Jones said. “Because by that time you had already been exposed to the program.”
Still, after recounting her own experience with substance abuse for “Red Table Talk” listeners, Banfield-Jones explained that Davidson “hadn’t hit rock bottom” prior to that Philadelphia show, but that it’s exactly what it would take for him to get better.
“I was a functioning addict just the same,” Banfield-Jones said.
“But it’s a process, it’s something that had to take its hold,” Davidson said. “And I just want to thank you, because that saved my life. And that was one of the many things that happened that are the reason why I’m here.”
Davidson went on to admit that he’s still in the process of repairing the damage of his addiction with his family.
“One of the things that’s come with my life is not to apologize, but to atone,” Davidson said.
Smith added that the atonement for her and her mother came from watching Banfield-Jones become a supportive grandmother to her children.
“I hope for you that there will be an opening in some way to really have a deep healing with your kids,” Smith said to Davidson.
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